> b) Also, I am wondering if anyone here has tried something like what I am
describing, the "daisy-chaining" of XSLTs?  If so, are there any other
"gotchas"?
>

Yes, running a pipeline of transformations is absolutely standard practice and
a highly recommended way of achieving code reuse.

But on the specifics, I'm afraid I haven't used an XSLT 1.0 processor in anger
for over 20 years so you'll need to find someone else to help.

Michael Kay
Saxonica